The US Department of Energy and the industrial sector anticipate an 11-18% annual increase in the market for carbon fiber, specifically driven by motivation to reduce weight for vehicles (Global market opportunities for carbon fiber: Carbon fiber world conference, Washington D.C. 2011). Currently, carbon fibers that meet specifications (250 ksi tensile strength and 25 Msi Young's modulus) for automotive applications are made from polyacrylonitrile (PAN), obtained from acrylonitrile (ACN), which is synthesized using propylene and ammonia. World ACN production in 2010 was 5.7 million tons, and is highly dependent on volatility of propylene prices. Additionally, propylene production (a byproduct of naphtha cracking for ethylene) is reducing due to growth of the natural gas based process for production of ethylene. In light of these facts and increased demand for carbon fibers, US DOE has expressed interest in making ACN precursor that can meet specifications needed for production of carbon fibers from renewable non-food biomass with a goal of $1.00/lb cost.
There is a need for improved catalysts and methods for producing ACN and intermediates to make ACN. Such a catalytic composition and method are described herein.